Author's Note: This short story was obviously inspired by a song called Once Upon a December. It was also inspired by a wonderful fanfiction called Behind Golden Eyes.
The abandoned house shook and vibrated from the lightning storm overhead. The rain pounded on the already cracked windows mercilessly, the wind screaming angrily. Three young souls sat together, cowering in fear of the storm wreaking havoc. The thin, well-worn blanket was wrapped around their thin bodies.
"Ollie, I'm scared," Ryuto, the youngest of the three, whimpered to the oldest, his wide eyes looking around the unstable house fearfully.
"Don't worry; Oliver is right here, okay?" Oliver assured the young boy with a tired yet confident smile. Yuki, the second oldest, gave Oliver a skeptical look but didn't say a word. Ryuto seemed to be comforted and gave a big, toothy grin. Oliver suddenly remembered something that he thought would be of use. He stood up, carefully stepping around the fallen blanket. He picked up a rather large coat from the corner of the small room, feeling pleased when he saw the two younger kids looking at him with curious gazes. It was a deep blue with many gold-colored buttons and fancy-looking designs. Ryuto gave an audible gasp.
"That coat is so cool! Where did you get it?" Ryuto exclaimed, his eyes nearly glowing while Yuki sat with a rather blank expression. Her eyes, however, had a spark of interest hidden within them.
"I got it from a friend of mine," Oliver lied. He made his way back to where the other two were sitting and attempted to wrap the coat around the three of them. It wasn't big enough for it to fully wrap around the three of them, but it was thick and much warmer than the blanket they previously were using. Even with the storm throwing a tantrum outside, and the freezing winter wind blowing, the three of them were warm. They nearly forgot they were kids living on the streets. Ryuto then broke the silence.
"Hey Ollie, remember that song you once sang? I think you said it was called 'Once Upon a December'."
Oliver responded with an uncertain tone, "I believe so."
"Could you please sing it?"
Oliver blushed lightly like he did whenever he was asked to sing.
"I-I don't know, perhaps I've forgotten some of the lyrics?" he stuttered with a nervous laugh, averting his eyes.
"Please!" Ryuto pleaded. Oliver looked at him, gave a shy smile, cleared his throat, and began.
Ryuto's eyes began to droop while Yuki listened quietly. By the end of the song, the rain had become nothing more than a soft pitter patter on the roof, the wind barely a whisper.